'I have learnt one must never quit the chair, will rule Delhi for 5 years if elected': Arvind Kejriwal

Former Delhi chief ministerArvind Kejriwal today said he has learnt that "one must never quit the chair" even as he claimed that AAP had achieved more in its 49-day rule in the national capital than the Narendra Modi government in its 100-days at the Centre. "No one in India's history worked the way we did in those 49 days. We reduced prices of electricity, water, brought down corruption.

"What has Modi done in his 100 days? BJP has failed to control inflation. After winning elections, they have increased train fares and the prices of petrol, sugar," Kejriwal told a rally here. Kejriwal said he regretted his decision to quit as the chief minister and added that he had learnt a lesson. If voted to power, he would focus on Delhi and govern for the full term of five years, he said. "We are new to politics and we learnt one thing, that one must never quit the chair. This time if we come to power, we will not quit. We will stay in Delhi and rule for full five years.

"Congress did not allow us to work and only I know how I worked for those 49 days, which is why I quit... Now you have to ensure that we rule for five years," he said.
Kejriwal addressed two 'Lalkar' rallies here today at Rithala and Kirari. In an attempt to regain the lost ground after his party's Lok Sabha drubbing, the AAP convener has held four rallies in the past month.

He said that the anti-corruption branch of Delhi government has been weakened by the Centre. "It (the Centre) has removed AIIMS chief vigilance officer Sanjeev Chaturvedi. The Anti Corruption branch of Delhi government, because of which I could take action in corruption cases, has been weakened," he charged.
The remarks on Sunday came against the backdrop of a sting operation in which a rival party member is allegedly caught talking about attacking Kejriwal in today's rallies.
"I am not one of those who is going to run because of these threats," he said.

He also dared BJP to ask the Delhi Lt Governor to dissolve the Legislative Assembly so that elections can be held in the national capital. "A survey has said that if elections are held, 47 per cent of the votes will go to AAP, 36 per cent will go to BJP and 12 per cent to Congress. Even RSS did a survey which said that BJP will get less than 32 seats.

"BJP is talking about polls in Haryana and Maharashtra; why is it scared of elections in Delhi," Kejriwal said. Kejriwal added that while he was chief minister, he not only brought down corruption but also gave Rs 1 crore to the family of a constable who was killed by bootleggers. "I was attacked for giving a subsidy of Rs 200 crore for electricity. But I gave it to people and did nothing for myself. Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel bought a helicopter for herself while I travelled in my old WagonR," Kejriwal said.

He also slammed Congress and BJP and accused the two parties of playing politics on the e-rickshaw issue. "There are some 2.5 lakh families of e-rickshaw operators that are suffering because of the politics being played by BJP and Congress... How much time does it take to draft guidelines. But for that you need good intentions," he said